MONITORING (SW) – U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad has departed for travel to Doha, Islamabad, Kabul, Oslo, and Sofia in connection with the peace parlay.
According to the State Department, in Doha and Kabul, Ambassador Khalilzad will press for resolution of the remaining issues ahead of intra-Afghan negotiations, specifically final prisoner exchanges and reduced violence.
In Islamabad, Ambassador Khalilzad will seek Pakistani support in the effort to advance intra-Afghan negotiations. In Oslo and Sofia, Ambassador Khalilzad will update NATO Allies on the Afghan peace process, it said.
According to the statement, the parties are closer than ever to the start of Intra-Afghan Negotiations, the key next step to ending Afghanistan’s 40-year long war. Although significant progress has been made on prisoner exchanges, the issue requires additional effort to fully resolve.
The envoy begins his trip to resolve the remaining issues before the start of the inter-Afghan talks, in particular the finalization of prisoner exchanges and the reduction of violence, but four and a half years after the signing of the peace agreement, the time and place of the talks have not been determined.
ENDS
